Jimmie Johnson’s Contract With Chevrolet Robbed Him of a Legitimate Shot at the Indy 500

The seven-time Cup Series champion, Jimmie Johnson, raced in the Indianapolis 500 in 2022. He crashed into the outside wall on Lap 194 and couldn’t finish the race despite putting on a strong performance until then. Regardless of all his other achievements, he still worries that he couldn’t partake in the famed event more often and secure at least one good result.

He recently interviewed with SPEED on Fox and spoke about missing out on a chance to race in the Indianapolis 500 during his prime. The former Hendrick Motorsports ace believed that he might have secured a better finish had he raced back then, when he was “braver.”

“I had a legitimate shot to run with Roger [Penske] at the speedway,” he said. “I think they were Honda-powered only. And my Chevy contract was a problem with that. I ended up doing the 500, but if it was when I was a little bit younger and more brave, I think I might have had a better result.”

The opportunity to run for Team Penske had come around 2008, he clarified. Those were the days when Cup Series seasons began with Johnson’s name already engraved on the trophy. One can only imagine the havoc he would have wreaked at the Indianapolis 500 had the deal gone through.

️ @JimmieJohnson wished he had run the Indy 500 when he was “younger and more brave.” He had a chance earlier in his NASCAR career with Team Penske, but it didn’t work out.@wbuxtonofficial | @KevinHarvick pic.twitter.com/7qjfPT3r8Y

— SPEED on FOX (@SPEEDonFOX) February 26, 2026

Why Johnson quit the IndyCar Series after only two seasons

After retiring from the Cup Series in 2020, Johnson packed his bags and became a driver in America’s premier open-wheeled series, IndyCar. He spent 2021 and 2022 driving for Chip Ganassi Racing. While he showcased a lot of promise, he decided to retire from the job at the end of 2022. This decision was backed by the desire to spend more time with his family.

He told The RACER Channel, “I found myself in a very similar cadence that I did in NASCAR, being gone all the time. I just didn’t… it wasn’t feeling right. I knew that a third year was there, but I just wanted a change of pace, and I wanted to be with Chani and the girls.”

Judging from the direction in which his performance trajectory was heading, he could have secured some really good finishes had he stayed for a third year. But instead, his best result remains the fifth-place finish he secured in Iowa in 2022. Interestingly, when he finally ran the Indianapolis 500 that same year, it was with a Honda-powered car.